Hi folks,

While the correct settings for speakers is all deeply embedded in our brain, I thought I would ask what would be best for measuring the fire alarm in my work building. It is a whooping electronic noise verses a bell. Best way I can describe it.

Why? It's a new system and it was LOUD! Painfully loud. I'm the building chief warden so I've been working with Buildings to try and correct this. All alarms units have been turned down but now there is a complaint of a low level in one particular office when the door is closed. It seems to have two settings only, "painful" and "not painful" so I would like to determine the actual levels throughout the building during our next drill.

I would A-weighting, since I doubt the alarm tone has much energy in the bass range. Then use fast response if the alarm consists of many short bursts of sound, or slow response if it consists of long tones.

A-weighting is the usual setting for most commercial testing and standards.

Thanks Guys!

Andrew, setting the meter for A weighting(since bass usually isn't a significant workplace problem)and slow response is generally suggested. Here's a Canadian source with workplace noise measurement info that might be of interest.